Surgical belt



Jan. 2, 1940. 1 CREPER SURGICAL BELT Filed Dec. 5, 1958 .INVENTOR lowsCreper BY n . A "ORNEY Patented Jan. 2, 1940 .UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE 6 Claims.

'I'his invention relates to surgical belts, bands or bandages designedparticularly for the support and protection of the lower back andabdominal regions of the body.

My invention contemplates the provision of 4an eiclent protecting beltuseful in the treatment of back and abdominal injuries and certain bodyailments, and which may be quickly and easily secured in place andadjusted to support and adequately protect the injured region or theregions where treatment is indicated.

My invention further contemplates the provision of quickly and easilyoperated securing means for the respective ends ofthe belt, whichsecuring means includes a quick-acting initial means adjustable to givethe desired support and protection without undue pressure on the body,and a second quick-acting and adjustable fastening means which becomesautomatically adjusted to its proper position when the initial fasteningmeans has been adjusted and secured, and which cooperates with theinitial fastening means to form an adjustable overlapped closure ofdouble thickness for the ends of the belt, While avoiding the need forlaces, straps, buckles or the like comparatively bulky fastening meanswhich might be difficult for the patient to manipulate and whichfrequently present protuberances tending to exert undesirable pressureupon the body and consequent discomfort or pain.

My invention further contemplates the provision of a support or belt ofsimple construction and having completely separable or open ends andprovided with independently operated but quickly and easily manipulatedsecuring means for the respective ends thereof and also provided withmeans for preventing the wrinkling of the support or the formation ofundesirable folds or creases therein which might cause discomfort.

'I'he various objects of the invention Will be clear from thedescription which follows and from the drawing, in which,

Fig. l is a perspective view of my improved belt or band as it appearswith the ends thereof closed or secured in place.

Fig. 2 is an elevational view of the same as it appears with the endsdetached and the belt spread out at.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective View of the front or abdominalsupporting part of the belt, showing the adjustable independent securingmeans for the respective belt ends.

In the practical embodiment of the invention which I have shown by wayof example, the body I0 of the belt may be made of any suitable textilematerial such as loosely woven canvas or other comparativelylight-weight fabric, not likely to induce excessive perspiration but ofsufficient strength to provide the desired supporting and protectingeffect. The belt may be applied directly over a suitable dressing for awound resulting from a surgical operation, or suitable padding ordressings may be interposed between it and the body regions which are tobe protected or supported. The peripheral edges 10 II and I2 of the beltmay be so shaped as to accommodate the belt to movement of the body ofthe wearer, being preferably, though not necessarily, concaved at theside portions I3 and I4 of the belt and convexed to slightly enlarge thebelt in width at the back I5 and at the front At any desired intervalsalong the belt body I0, suitable upright ribs may optionally be providedfor the purpose not only of maintaining the belt flat when in use butalso of providing the desired supporting effect. As shown, the rib Il isintended to become arranged at about the center of the back portion I5.Said rib is enclosed in a pocket formed by stitching the rib cover I 8to the outer face of the body I0 as by means of the lines of stitchingI9 and 20. Similarly, the ribs 2| and 22 may be arranged at the sideextremities of the back, though it will be understood that as many or asfew ribs are provided as may be found convenient or desirable.

To provide a limited amount of elasticity to the belt and thereby toenable it to be more readily adjusted and fastened into place and at thesame time to exert its proper supporting action when secured inposition, inserts, gussets or gores as 23, preferably' of triangularshape and of longitudinally elastic webbing, are inserted into the edgesII and I2 and in the region of the side portions III of the belt. Anydesired number of elastic inserts, gores or gussets may be thus insertedor arranged at any points in the edges II and I2 as may be founddesirable, or theymay be entirely omitted, if desired. j

As has been indicated, a separate quick-acting and adjustable fasteningmeans is provided for each of the ends of the belt, one fastening meansbeing engaged before the other and thereby constituting an initialfastening means for the belt, and the other constituting a nal securingmeans. As illustrated, the initial fastening means takes the form of atransversely arranged row of snap fastener elements as 24 positionedclosely adjacent to one extreme end edge 25 of the belt and shown in theform of snap fastener studsprojecting outwardly from the outer surfaceof the belt. The row of fasteners 24 is intended to engage a selectedone of the multiplicity of rows 26, 21 and 28 of cooperating snapfastener elements, illustrated as sockets. The transverse rows 26, 21and 28 of sockets are arranged in substantial longitudinally spacedrelation to the other extreme end edge 29 of the belt and in suitablespaced relation to each other on what may be designated as an end flap30. It will be understood that the fastener elements at the end of eachrow are arranged quite close to the respective adjacent belt edges lland I2 and that a sufllcient number of intermediate fasteners areprovided in each row to provide adequate securing means throughout thewidth of the belt. The size of the end flap 30 will vary, depending onwhich row 26, 21 or 28 is selected and engaged by the row of fasteners24. It will be understood that while I have illustrated three rows offasteners from which to select for engagement by the row 24, any numberof rows may be provided, and that the spacing between the rows may alsobe varied to any desired extent. It will also be understood that while Ihave illustrated cooperating snap fastener elements as the initialadjustable securing means, any other suitable type of quickly attachableand separable fastener )elements commonly used may be substitutedtherefor, in a manner which will be readily understood and which will beobvious to those skilled in the art.

On the extreme end edge 29 of the belt is secured one element orStringer 3| of a fastener of the slide-operated type commonly known as azipper. The individual interlocking fasteners of the element 3| are, asis common, secured to and carried by a suitable flexible tape 32, whichis in turn secured to the inner surface of the body portion I0 by meansof a pair of spaced parallel lines of stitching as 33 and 34 to form apocket between the lines of stitching, and between the tape and thebelt. In said pocket is preferably inserted the stiffening orreinforcing rib 35, the pocket being closed at its ends to maintain therib within the pocket. At the other end portion of the belt and inlongitudinally spaced relation to the extreme end edge 25 thereof, issecured the similar cooperating slide-operated fastener element 36, asby means of the lines of stitching 31 and 38 forming a similar pocket inwhich the rib 39 is inserted. I'he spacing or distance between thefastener element 36 and the row 24 of snap fasteners is the same as thatbetween the row of snap fastener elements 26 and the slide-operatedfastener element 3|. On the element 36 is slidably mounted the sliderfor interlocking the elements 3| and 36 after they have been arranged inthe proper positions for that purpose.

Additional slide-operated fastener elements 4|, 42, corresponding innumber to the number of additional rows 21, 28 of snap fastenerelements, are secured to the outer face of the body portion I 0 adjacentthe fastener element 36, by means of lines of stitching through thetapes thereof similar to the stitching 33, 34 to form pockets similar tothe pocket for the fastener 3|, and in which pockets, ribs similar tothe ribs 35 and 39 are inserted. The spacing between the fastenerelements 36, 4| and 42 is the same as the spacing between the rows ofsnap fastener elements 26, 21 and 28, so that when the proper row ofsnap fastenerelements is selected and engaged by the row 26. thefastener element 3| is automatlcally arranged in the correct positionfor engagement with the corresponding one of the elements 36, 4| and 42.

The belt is arranged about the body of the wearer by an enveloping orwrapping movement to carry the row 24 of snap fastener elements intoregister with a selected row 26, 21 or 28. As shown in Fig. 3, the row24 is in engagement with the center row 21 oi' cooperating snap fastenerelements.

'I'he initial securing of the belt in position or in other words, thefastening of the extreme end edge 26 in place, by the engagement of therow 24 with the selected row of cooperating fasteners is quickly andeasily accomplished and can most frequently be done by the patienthimself. The patient selects the required row necessary to put thedesired pressure upon his body without discomfort. When the initialfastening means have been so selected and secured, the flap 30 extendspast and outside of the row 24 with the fastener element 3| thereof inposition to be engaged by and interlocked with the correspondingselected one of the cooperating slide fasteners 36, 4| and 42. The endof the element 3| being inserted into the proper slider on the selectedslide fastener element, the slider may then be moved downwardly tointerlock the element 3| with the corresponding selected one of thecooperating elements 36, 4| and 42, thereby to secure the end edge 29 inplace, or in other words, to complete the final fastening movement whichhas been initiated by the securing of the initial fastening means,namely, the snap fastener elements.4

By the provision of two separate sets of fastening means, namely, theinitial fastening means and the slide fastening means, a strong andadequate closure is attained, not likely to open or stretch onthe'pressure exerted by movement of the body of the wearer yet which isso quick and easy to operate that the wearer himself, even thoughrecovering from an operation, can make the required adjustment andeffect the required closure. It also becomes possible to secure each endof the belt in place independently of the other end and to provide anoverlap or two thicknesses of material where the maximum protecting andsupporting effect is desired. By utilizing the slide fastener tape as arib pocket, additional simple but eilicient support is attained whendesired It will be seen that I have provided a simple but efficientadjustable belt, offering the required protection and support to thebody, quick and easy to manipulate and well designed to meet therequirements of practical use.

While I have shown and described certain specific embodiments of myinvention, I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself thereto,but intend to claim the invention as broadly as may be permitted by thestate of the prior art and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A protecting belt of the character described comprising an inelasticelongated body portion having completely separable ends, a slideoperatedfastener element secured transversely at one of the ends, said elementbeing of substantially the same length as that of said one end, a seriesof spaced parallel slide-operated fasteners each carrying a slide andsecured to the body portion in longitudinally spaced relation to theother end of the body portion, said slide-operated fasteners comprisinga variable securing means for said one end of the body teners of theseries, said separable fastener elements being secured to the bodyportion in longitudinally spaced relation to the first-mentionedslide-operated fastener element whereby the belt is secured to the bodyof the wearer by first engaging the row of separable fastener ele mentsat said other end with a selected one of the cooperating fastenerelements and then operating the slide of the corresponding slideoperatedfasteners, a tape for each of said slideoperated fasteners, parallelspaced lines of stitching securing the tape to the body portion andthereby providing a rib-holding pocket between the tape and thebodyPortion and a rib arranged in the pocket.

2. In a belt of the character described open at its ends, initialselective fastening means for one end comprising a separable fastenerelement closely adjacent said one end, a series of longitudinally spacedcooperating separable fastener elements in longitudinally spacedrelation to the other end of the belt, that part of the belt between thecooperating fastener elements and said other end comprising an innerfront ap on the belt, a slide-operated fastener element at said otherend and a series of longitudinally spaced slide fastener elements inlongitudinally spaced relation to said one end and in the same spacedrelation `as the cooperating separable fastener elements, that part ofthe belt between the first-mentioned separable fastener element and'saidseries of slide-operated fasteners constituting a front outer ilapoverlapping the inner front flap when the respective fastener elementsare selectively engaged.

3. In a belt of the character described open at its ends, a tape at oneextreme end of the belt,

`a slide-operated fastener carriedb'y the tape,

spaced lines of stitching securing said tape to said extreme endproviding a rib-holding pocket y between the tape and the belt, a seriesof longitudinally spaced tapes each carrying a slideoperated fastenersecured by similar stitching to the other end portion of the belt inlongitudinally spaced relation to the other extreme end, thefirst-mentioned slide-operated fastener being seabout the body of awearer.

lectively engageable with one of the said series to adjustably securesaid one extreme end to the belt, said slide-operated fastenersconstituting a final securing means for the belt, and an initialsecuring means for the belt comprising a series of sets of separablesnap-fasteners, one set being positioned at said other extreme end ofthe belt, and the remainder at said one end portion of the belt in thesame corresponding spaced relation to said one extreme end as the spacedrelation of said series of slide-operated fasteners to said otherextreme end.

4. In a body belt having completely separable end edges, a slidefastener element at one end edge, a multiplicity of cooperating slidefastener elements in substantially spaced relation to each other at theother end portion of the belt, a tape for each of said elements,transverse lines of stitching securing the tapes of said elements to thebelt and forming rib pockets between adjacent lines of stitching, and astiffening rib in each of the pockets.

5. In a belt of the character described having completely separable endedges, a transversely arranged slide fastener element adjacent one endedge, a tape for said element, spaced lines of stitching securing thetape to the belt and forming a rib pocket in the belt, a rib in saidpocket, spaced and substantially parallel cooperating slide fastenerelements at the other end portion of the belt, a tape for each of thecooperating slide fastener elements, pocket forming stitching securingthe last-mentioned tapes to the belt, and ,a rib in each of the pocketsformed by the last-mentioned stitching.

6. In a belt of the character described open at its ends, a tape at oneend of the belt, a rst slide fastener element carried by the tape,spaced lines of stitching securing said tape to the belt and forming arib-holding pocket between said lines of stitching, a rib in the pocket,a series of longitudinally spaced tapes each carrying a slide fastenerelement at the other end portion of the belt, spaced lines of stitchingsecuring the spaced tapes to the belt, and ribs between thelast-mentioned lines of stitching, saidilrst slide fastener elementcooperating with a selected one of the series of slide vfastenerelements to close said open ends and to adjustably secure the belt LoUIsCREPER.

